Chronic under funding of unis forces reliance on high fee paying international students

"The Greens do not condone any type of academic misconduct, but this scandal reveals the underbelly of a higher education system heavily reliant on high fee paying international students.

"Coalition and Labor governments have underfunded our universities for decades, making them more reliant on student fees - particularly international student fees.

"Universities have a direct financial incentive to enrol as many high fee paying international students as possible, without working to ensure they have the support and resources required to study effectively.

"A recent Federal Government report revealed 16 per cent of the total revenue of Australian public universities was derived from international students, compared to 15 per cent from HECS -HELP and FEE-HELP.

"Experts have warned of domestic students paying $100,000 for a degree under the Coalition's proposal to lift the cap on student fees - increasing the financial and academic pressure on students.

"Instead of treating international and domestic students as cash cows it's time the government properly funded higher education, reduced the financial burden on students and encouraged universities to provide adequate student support programs.